LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) -- The Louisville Metro Arson Squad's report on the April 3 fire at General Electric's Appliance Park points the finger at the company saying it dropped the ball on several things that could have made a difference in fighting the fire.
The fire reportedly caused more than $50 million in damage at GE's Building 6 warehouse.
Investigators officially released the arson report on Wednesday during a news conference at Okolona Fire Department.
In the report, officials said failed water pumps, fire hydrants, and sprinklers made the five alarm fire worse.
"I think our report clearly documents the position that we've taken. These are based on interviews, taped statements, and other information from things that we found at the scene," Major Henry Ott said.
Hours after the news conference, GE released two videos. Kim Freeman, a spokesperson for the company, said the videos disproved portions of the arson report.
The most vivid video came from a camera attached to a helmet worn by someone inside the building. It showed water shooting from a hose as flames ravaged Building 6. Freeman said the footage "clearly showed" the facility's water pumps worked.
Fire investigators, however, interpret the video differently.
Ott said the video showed several indicators of low pressure. For one, the water flowed straight ahead rather than over the fire.
Ott said the stream of water seen in the video should have hit the ceiling with considerable pressure, but instead it could barely reach the ceiling.
He also noted that it typically takes three men to control a pressurized hose and in the video only one man appears to be behind the hose.
Ott suggested that firefighters could have limited the damage to 25-percent of the building, had the fire hydrants been fully functional.
"They got some things wrong and some things right. There was speculation in there and there were facts in there," Freeman said, adding that the notion that their fire protection equipment was outdated or in disrepair was false.
Fire investigators have not determined what caused the fire, but they believe it may have been cause by a lightning strike or an electrical short.
Officials said they do not believe the fire was criminal in nature.
